Wickeds Scandal (The Wickeds) by Kathleen Ayers Page A

streets of
London.  Mornings in Macao, he awoke to the sound of monkeys chattering in
the thick brush that surrounded his compound.  Well, he mused, he still heard
the chattering of monkeys, but here the monkeys were called the ton . 
Sutton chuckled.
    “What’s so
funny?”  Caro sat up.  She lifted one ivory shoulder, allowing her
chemise to dip low, nearly exposing one round breast.
    Sutton ran
his hand through his hair, determined not to bodily throw her out. “What are
you doing here, Caro?”  He didn’t bother to hide the irritation in his
voice.
    Caro ignored
his tone. “Well, the other night,” she said, stretching like a cat, “you seemed
quite put out with me and I think I know why.” Her full lips pursed in apology
as she tossed a coppery strand over her shoulder.  The chemise rode up her
thighs.
    Sutton
walked to the sideboard and poured himself a large glass of brandy.  Clearly
Caro was bent on seduction.  It was much too early in the day for brandy,
but Sutton didn’t care.   The brandy was from his father’s private
store, and quite expensive.  His father, he thought with a smile, enjoyed
a good brandy.  He sipped in the smoky warmth and wished his father still
alive.  He missed his father, Robert.  Sutton thanked God that Donata
forced Sutton home, even though the circumstances were not of Sutton’s
choosing.  He had been with Robert at the end. 
    Caro gave a
puff of irritation.  She hated to be ignored. 
    “You were
saying?”  He didn’t even bother looking interested, because he wasn’t, not
in the least.  He imagined the woman on his sofa to be smaller, but no
less voluptuous.   Alex .  The hair a profusion of
chestnut curls, not copper strands.  The eyes gray, not blue.  The
smell of tart, green apples filled his nose. An image of Alex, naked on his
lap, reading to him, her mass of hair trailing over his arms, as he turned the
pages of a book, flashed before him.  He took another sip of the brandy.
    “Darling, I
sense you are cross with me.  Have I made you jealous?”  Caro batted
her eyes at him and tried to sound despondent. “Viscount Lindley may have
stolen a kiss in the gardens but I told you, it meant nothing.  I should not have taken a turn around the terrace with him. You aren’t going to challenge him, are you?”  Her face fairly beamed in delight at the thought of
two Wickeds fighting over her.  How Caro would enjoy the uproar.
    Sutton
snorted.  Nick, Viscount Lindley, could care less about Lady Caroline
Fellowes.  Nick thought Caro a witless, vapid creature with only a nice
pair of tits to recommend her.  Caro’s machinations did not impress
Sutton’s best friend.  Nor did they impress Sutton.  His patience
with Caro and her maneuvering in and out of his bed were over.
    “You ignored
me at the opera, Cam. I’ll admit when Viscount Lindley asked to me to take the
air with him, I thought to make you jealous.  I had no idea,” she paused
dramatically, “that he would try to take liberties.”  Caro slid across the
couch, perching herself on the edge in a display of half-naked flesh.
    Sutton swirled
the brandy in his mouth.  Caro had flounced over to Nick begging him to
take her out for a breath of fresh air, least she faint. 
    “You know I’m
not interested in Viscount Lindley.  His eyes….” Caro shuddered
delicately, “well they terrify me. Besides, it’s you I adore.  I love
everything about you.  There is no other man for me.” She declared,
allowing her breasts to spill out of the chemise.
    Sutton
pretended to mull over her declaration.  “Hmmm.  What is my younger
sister’s name?”
    Caro froze,
looking like a startled deer. She bit her lip, at a loss.
    “Well, I’m
not sure you ever mentioned her to me.”
    “Her? I have
two sisters.  I’m positive I’ve mentioned both.  You’ve met Miranda
several times, I believe.  Elizabeth, she is the younger, is away at boarding
school in Scotland.  I’m quite